***Blog posts on The NET represent the viewpoint of the author and have not been verified or endorsed by USATAA.***

Hot American summers seem to bring out some of the worst in our society. Anger erupts, violence happens, reactions escalate, and the reverberations in the news have hardly subsided before it happens again. The construct of race (which is not an actual biological thing) and the embedded history of white supremacy in America, inform our cultural scripting in ways that are both conscious and unconscious. Recent publicity about implicit bias is at least bringing some of that to the fore.

Those who want to be idealists may dream of a society that is not burdened with the products of white supremacy; i.e.,white privilege, income inequality, marginalization of people by color, nationality, gender, and economic status, etc. I hope that people reading this blog aspire to that ideal and recognize where and how we need to face up to current reality.

Some people respond to the Black Lives Matter movement as it if it is part of the problem. It certainly highlights their discomfort with the historical truth.

I received this quotation from a friend:

“Perfect analogy for how critics of ‘Black Lives Matter’ get it wrong. Like suggesting anyone promoting ‘Breast Cancer Awareness’ thinks other cancers are not worthy of attention.”

The idea that supporting Black Lives Matter means that you hate police or wish them ill is way off the mark. Anger that is not managed on either side is just a descent into spirals of craziness, bringing out exactly the opposite of what is needed.

OK-OK communication within communities can prevent many of these problems, though breaking up cultural scripts isn’t done overnight. But after centuries, people?

I saw a report that today would have been the 75th birthday of Emmett Till. If you don’t know who he was, look it up. Just as the videos of today tell their stories, the pictures of Emmett Till after he was tortured and killed galvanized the country. We need to be galvanized now, to be honest about the uneven distribution of power in our communities.

I say, idealists, people who promote I’m OK – You’re OK thinking, please honor those who rightly stand up for people whose lives have been treated as if they matter less.

4 Comments

I was 11 when Emmet Till was murdered. Life magazine reported on the murder extensively, and I read Life religiously. Whenever I see Emmet Till’s name, I go back to 1955.

Back then, I was unable to believe that grown men could react that way to a kid who seemed to be a lot like me – perhaps because I aspired to be 14, perhaps because his birth day was 2 days after mine, perhaps because I knew at a gut level that if I want people to protect me from Jew-haters, I have to help protect others from people who hate them. I decided something has to be done. I started collecting signatures for fair housing legislation the next year, and I stayed active politically until 1970, when we left for Taiwan. (When we came back almost 2 years later, I was so disoriented by the changes that occurred while I was gone, I withdrew from politics.) I still can’t understand how people can think it’s OK to murder others.

In any case, thanks for remembering Emmet Till. His memory needs to stay with us until we root out the hate, fear, and arrogance that led to his death.

I didn’t know who Emmet Till was. His name stands, symbolically, powerfully, among a long list of human beings who have felt, and currently experience the painful oppression of what Lucy so succinctly calls, “white privilege, income inequality, marginalization of people by color, nationality, gender, and economic status.” Among the growing chorus, Lucy Freedman calls for breaking cultural scripts by combining our hopes and dreams for a better, more just society with “facing up to current reality.” We can begin! Consider noticing race and gender privilege around you for a few minutes each day. For another minute, reflect on whether and how you/we may unconsciously enact such assumed privilege and marginalization.
I found myself engaged in such a reflection today by asking myself, “whose voices are not heard? Who has been left out? What does it mean that those voices remain silent?” It is a start.

I don’t get it. This is a professional therapists organisation right? Why are you seeminly promoting such a politically divisive group such as Black Lives Matter? I was considering TA as a real legitamate approach to treating mental health, but this blog material seems really inappropriate.

Thank you for taking the time to offer feedback. We want serve our membership, and your opinion matters. TA has great tools for discussing difficult issues in society. This is a good place to have adult-adult conversation about important issues. Our organization has members from all over the country and has diverse points of view. We serve therapists, educators, organizational leaders, members seeking personal development. All blog entries are written by individuals. USATAA does not endorse any particular frame of reference. This blog is a voice for all members and their thoughts around how they use TA in their lives and work.